Spatial deviations of the temporomandibular joint after oncological mandibular reconstruction.

Spatial deviations of the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) after oncological mandibular reconstruction are important to the aesthetic and functional rehabilitation. The aim of this study was to clarify whether and how three dimensionally (3D) printed patient-specific surgical plates, and the preservation of the condyle or ramus, affect spatial deviations of the TMJ. A total of 33 patients who underwent mandibular reconstruction via computer-assisted surgery were included. Regarding absolute deviations, patients in the 3D-printed plate group showed smaller TMJ deviations compared to those in the conventional plate group. There was no difference in absolute deviations of the TMJ regardless of whether the condyle or ramus was preserved. Regarding physiological deviations, the impact on the contralateral TMJ was smaller in the 3D-printed plate group. Patients with both the condyle and ramus removed had significantly higher deviations of the condyle and joint space. In summary, 3D-printed patient-specific surgical plates improved the spatial accuracy of the TMJ. Under physiological conditions, TMJ deviations on the operated side were mainly affected by the preservation of the condyle. Removal of both the condyle and ramus caused more severe spatial interference to the TMJ; this should be further confirmed.

Combined approaches to reveal genes associated with litter size in Yunshang black goats.

Intensive artificial selection has been imposed in Yunshang black goats, the first black specialist mutton goat breed in China, with a breeding object of improving reproductive performance, which has contributed to reshaping of the genome including the characterization of SNP, ROH and haplotype. However, variation in reproductive ability exists in the present population. A WGS was implemented in two subpopulations (polytocous group, PG, and monotocous group, MG) with evident differences of litter size. Following the mapping to reference genome, and SNP calling and pruning, three approaches - GWAS, ROH analysis and detection of signatures of selection - were employed to unveil candidate genes responsible for litter size. Consequently, 12 candidate genes containing OSBPL8 with the minimum P-value were uncovered by GWAS. Differences were observed in the pattern of ROH between two subpopulations that shared similar low inbreeding coefficients. Two ROH hotspots and 12 corresponding genes emerged from ROH pool association analysis. Based on the nSL statistic, 15 and 61 promising genes were disclosed under selection for MG and PG respectively. Of them, some promising genes participate in ovarian function (PPP2R5C, CDC25A, ESR1, RPS26 and SERPINBs), seasonal reproduction (DIO3, BTG1 and CRYM) and metabolism (OSBPL8, SLC39A5 and SERPINBs). Our study pinpointed some novel promising genes influencing litter size, provided a comprehensive insight into genetic makeup of litter size and might facilitate selective breeding in goats.

Genomic Signature of Mismatch Repair Deficiency in Areca Nut-Related Oral Cancer.

Areca nut (AN) chewing contributes to an increase of oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) cases in South and Southeast Asia; however, genomic events underlying the carcinogenesis process of AN-related OSCC remain unclear. Here, we comprehensively describe the genomic and transcriptome alterations of 113 Chinese OSCC patients (89 AN related and 24 AN negative) by whole-exome sequencing and RNA sequencing, and we compared the genomic differences between AN-related and AN-negative samples by integrating sequencing data of 325 OSCC patients from The Cancer Genome Atlas database and 50 from a published Taiwanese study. We identified 11 significantly mutated genes for OSCC, including 4 novel ones (ATG2A, WEE1, DST, and TSC2), of which WEE1 and ATG2A mutated with significantly higher rates in AN-related samples (P = 0.04 and P = 0.003, respectively). Mutational signature analysis revealed that AN-related OSCCs were specially characterized by the genomic signature of mismatch repair deficiency (dMMR), which could also predict the prognosis status of AN-related OSCC. In addition, an elevated PD-L1 expression was also observed in both AN-related patients (P = 3.71 × 10-11) and those with a high dMMR level (P = 1.99 × 10-4). Further differential expression analysis and in vitro experiments confirmed the role of dMMR in the development of OSCC induced by AN exposure. Taken together, this study first revealed the molecular profiles and highlighted the role of dMMR in AN-related OSCC among the Chinese population and identified that AN-related OSCC may represent a potential cohort for effective anti-PD-1/L1 immunotherapy.

"One-piece" patient-specific reconstruction plate for double-barrel fibula-based mandibular reconstruction.

Segmental mandibular defects require reconstruction. The fibula flap serves as a versatile flap in restoring mandibular contour and bony height. With the advances in computer-aided design and additive manufacturing technology, an innovative "one-piece" patient-specific reconstruction plate to facilitate double-barrel fibula flap shaping and bone securing was developed; the plate is described in this study. The "one-piece" plate is fabricated with individualized specifications and is mainly composed of three components: the long-bar reconstruction plate, a short-bar plate, and connecting bars. Our initial experiences showed that mandibular reconstructive surgery was greatly facilitated by the "one-piece" reconstruction plate for double-barrel fibula flap reconstruction and achieved satisfactory outcomes. A well-designed clinical trial is required to confirm the superiority of the "one-piece" reconstruction plate in the future. ClinicalTrials.gov registration: NCT03057223.

A novel 'surgeon-dominated' approach to the design of 3D-printed patient-specific surgical plates in mandibular reconstruction: a proof-of-concept study.

Three-dimensionally (3D) printed patient-specific surgical plates have been proposed to facilitate mandibular reconstruction and are attracting extensive attention. We have recently reported the high accuracy of 3D-printed patient-specific surgical plates used in head and neck reconstruction. Based on this previous work, the current study proposes a novel 'surgeon-dominated' approach to the design of 3D-printed patient-specific surgical plates. The aim of this proof-of-concept study was to explore the workflow and technical procedures of the surgeon-dominated approach. The workflow includes virtual surgery, the design and printing of patient-specific surgical devices, and real surgery. The prototype of the patient-specific surgical plate was designed by surgeons and further optimized for 3D printing by engineers. Different types of mandibular defect were tested to confirm the wide applicability of this approach. Cases in which this approach was used were reviewed and the duration of time spent on each case studied. Based on a total of 16 patients, the time spent on virtual surgery and plate design was 18.83±13.19hours, and the time taken for 3D printing, post-processing, and product delivery was 162.9±55.15hours. Therefore, this novel surgeon-dominated approach is feasible and time-saving, which would likely promote the wide application of patient-specific surgical plates and lead to a new era of 'digitization and precision' in mandibular reconstruction. ClinicalTrials.gov registration: NCT03057223.

MiRNA-485-5p, inhibits esophageal cancer cells proliferation and invasion by down-regulating O-linked N-acetylglucosamine transferase.

OBJECTIVE: Previous reports suggest that miRNA-485-5p is dysregulated and contributes to tumorigenesis in some cancer types. Nevertheless, the biological role of miRNA-485-5p in esophageal cancer (EC) is not well understood. Additionally, we found that the expression of miR-485-5p in EC tissues was aberrant. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Quantitative RT-PCR (qRT-PCR) was used to demonstrate the expression of miRNA-485-5p in EC cell lines. Cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8) assay and transwell assay indicated that miRNA-485-5p overexpression inhibited cell proliferation, migration, and invasion in EC cell lines. Additionally, Western blotting, dual-luciferase reporter assay, and rescue assay predicted that O-linked N-acetylglucosamine transferase (OGT) was a direct target of miRNA-485-5p. Moreover, we showed that miRNA-485-5p regulated EC tumorigenesis by down-regulating OGT expression in vitro and in vivo. RESULTS: The upregulation of miR-485-5p (fold change = 44 and 26 in ECA109 and TE-1, respectively; p<0.001) was showed by qRT-PCR. Compared with the control groups, the expression miR-485-5p significantly suppressed the proliferation, migration, and invasion of EC cells. The bioinformatic analysis predicted that the 3' untranslated region (UTR) of OGT contains one miR-485-5p target sequences. Western blotting and dual-luciferase reporter assay showed that activation of OGT 3'UTR was increased by co-transfection with miR-485-5p. Finally, CCK-8 assay predicted that the rescue effects of OGT expression on miR-485-5p induced inhibition of cell growth and tumor weight in Eca109 and TE1 cells. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that miRNA-485-5p is a suppressor of EC tumorigenesis and could serve as a novel candidate for therapeutic applications in EC treatment.

One versus two venous anastomoses in microsurgical head and neck reconstruction: a cumulative meta-analysis.

Venous compromise is still the most common cause of free flap failure. The use of two venous anastomoses has been advocated to reduce venous compromise. However, the effectiveness of this approach remains controversial. A systematic review and cumulative meta-analysis was performed to assess the effect of one versus two venous anastomoses on venous compromise and free flap failure in head and neck microsurgical reconstruction. A total of 27 articles reporting 7389 flaps were included in this study. On comparison of one versus two venous anastomoses, the odds ratio (OR) for flap failure was 1.66 (95% confidence interval 1.11-2.50; P=0.014) and for venous compromise was 1.50 (95% confidence interval 1.10-2.05; P=0.011), suggesting a significant increase in the flap failure rate and venous compromise rate in the single venous anastomosis group. These results show that the execution of two venous anastomoses has significant effects on reducing the vascular compromise and free flap failure rate in head and neck reconstruction.

[Mechanism research progress of miRNA in laryngeal carcinoma].

MiRNA(miR) is a non-coding small RNA of 18 to 24 nucleotides in length.By pairing with 3'UTR of its target mRNA molecule, miRNA regulateS the target mRNA molecule in the translation level or directly lead to its degradation. Each miRNA may target several to several hundred mRNAs, of which 30% of the mRNA is regulated by miRNAs. Some studies have shown that miRNA expression disorders play an important role in the development and progression of various tumors and may be the ideal target for tumor therapy. It has been shown that abnormal expression of RNA (miRNA) plays an important role in the occurrence and development of laryngeal cancer. Wang Ping found 47 kinds of miRNA expression abnormalities in laryngeal cancer tissue with microarray chip detection, that of which high expression were 23 kinds and low expression were 24 kinds. MiRNAs that are abnormally expressed in laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma are expected to be a new marker for early diagnosis of laryngeal cancer. In this review, we summarized the progress in recent three years on the association of miRNA and the biological behaviors of laryngeal cancer.

Isolating and confirming the Mudr­inserted flanking sequences of maize.

MuDR exhibits the highest transposition activity and insertional mutagenesis frequency in Mutator (Mu) family. If we isolate the MuDR­insertion­specific flanking sequences (MuDRFs), it will be crucial for using Mu element­mediated mutants. The MuDR­TAIL­PCR system was constructed and optimized using a combination of MuDR­TIR­nested specific primers and 12 arbitrary degenerate (AD) primers, modified reaction system and procedure and mutant DNA templates of 87 genotypes from M2 or M2:3 families created by crossing the W22::Mu line (active MuDR donor parent) from the UniformMu population with the Zong31 (Z31) line (recipient parent). Here 129 different MuDRFs were acquired by MuDR­TAIL­PCR, accounting for 86.60 % of the total mutant­specific agarose gel bands. In addition, we confirmed the authenticity of the non­redundant flanking sequence amplifications. The amplified non­redundant flanking sequences accounted for 65.12 % of the total MuDRFs, and 88.00 % of the non­redundant MuDRFs were inserted inside the genes. These results show that the MuDR­TAIL­PCR system that we developed can be used for specifically isolating MuDRFs.

Possible roles of COX-1 in learning and memory impairment induced by traumatic brain injury in mice

People who suffer from traumatic brain injury (TBI) often experience cognitive deficits in spatial reference and working memory. The possible roles of cyclooxygenase-1 (COX-1) in learning and memory impairment in mice with TBI are far from well known. Adult mice subjected to TBI were treated with the COX-1 selective inhibitor SC560. Performance in the open field and on the beam walk was then used to assess motor and behavioral function 1, 3, 7, 14, and 21 days following injury. Acquisition of spatial learning and memory retention was assessed using the Morris water maze on day 15 post-TBI. The expressions of COX-1, prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), interleukin (IL)-6, brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), platelet-derived growth factor BB (PDGF-BB), synapsin-I, and synaptophysin were detected in TBI mice. Administration of SC560 improved performance of beam walk tasks as well as spatial learning and memory after TBI. SC560 also reduced expressions of inflammatory markers IL-6 and PGE2, and reversed the expressions of COX-1, BDNF, PDGF-BB, synapsin-I, and synaptophysin in TBI mice. The present findings demonstrated that COX-1 might play an important role in cognitive deficits after TBI and that selective COX-1 inhibition should be further investigated as a potential therapeutic approach for TBI.

Possible roles of COX-1 in learning and memory impairment induced by traumatic brain injury in mice.

People who suffer from traumatic brain injury (TBI) often experience cognitive deficits in spatial reference and working memory. The possible roles of cyclooxygenase-1 (COX-1) in learning and memory impairment in mice with TBI are far from well known. Adult mice subjected to TBI were treated with the COX-1 selective inhibitor SC560. Performance in the open field and on the beam walk was then used to assess motor and behavioral function 1, 3, 7, 14, and 21 days following injury. Acquisition of spatial learning and memory retention was assessed using the Morris water maze on day 15 post-TBI. The expressions of COX-1, prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), interleukin (IL)-6, brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), platelet-derived growth factor BB (PDGF-BB), synapsin-I, and synaptophysin were detected in TBI mice. Administration of SC560 improved performance of beam walk tasks as well as spatial learning and memory after TBI. SC560 also reduced expressions of inflammatory markers IL-6 and PGE2, and reversed the expressions of COX-1, BDNF, PDGF-BB, synapsin-I, and synaptophysin in TBI mice. The present findings demonstrated that COX-1 might play an important role in cognitive deficits after TBI and that selective COX-1 inhibition should be further investigated as a potential therapeutic approach for TBI.

Enhancement of bandgap emission of Pt-capped MgZnO films: important role of light extraction versus exciton-plasmon coupling.

We present on a systematic study of the contribution of surface plasmon (SP) coupling and light extraction toward emission enhancement of Platinum (Pt) nano-patterns capped MgZnO films. Time resolved Photoluminescence (PL) results indicate that the Pt coating can greatly reduces the non-radiative recombination rate by passivation of surface states, making the decay slow down. Temperature dependence of the integrated photoluminescence intensity reveals that the Pt nano-patterns can offer a large amount of light transfer and scattering, which enormously increase the light extraction efficiency up to 3.8-fold. These results indicate that the increased light extraction efficiency caused by surface modification via Pt coating rather than SP coupling plays a dominant role in increasing bandgap emission of MgZnO film.

Carbon and nitrogen cycling in the Zhubi coral reef lagoon of the South China Sea as revealed by 210Po and 210Pb.

The radionuclides (210)Po and (210)Pb were examined to trace the cycling of particulate organic carbon (POC) and particulate organic nitrogen (PON) in the Zhubi coral reef lagoon. The net export flux of POC to the open sea is 14 mg Cm(-2) d(-1). However, the net exchange of PON has not yet been observed. On average, the vertical export fluxes in the lagoon of POC and PON, as derived from (210)Po/(210)Pb disequilibria, are 43 mg Cm(-2) d(-1) and 13.8 mg Nm(-2) d(-1), respectively. The deficit of (210)Po relative to (210)Pb in particulate matter provides evidence for the degradation of particulate organic matter. According to the mass balance budgets, 310 mg Cm(-2) d(-1) and 121 mg Nm(-2) d(-1) were recycled into dissolved fractions. Based on a first-order kinetics model, the degradation rate constants of POC and PON are 0.28 and 0.30 m(-1), respectively. Thus, (210)Po and (210)Pb can quantify the cycling of carbon and nitrogen in this coral lagoon.

A large excess of 210Po in the overlying water of the Zhubi Coral Reef flat, in the South China Sea.

The temporal variability of (210)Po and (210)Pb was examined in the overlying water of the Zhubi Coral Reef flat to detect nutrient-like behavior of (210)Po. Different mechanisms influencing their geochemical behaviors were observed. Excess (210)Po relative to (210)Pb revealed an additional input of (210)Po other than in situ production from (210)Pb. The (210)Po input comes from the reef flat sediment through diffusion. The diffusion contributes 62% of the total (210)Po. This diffusion of (210)Po directly highlights its nutrient-like behavior. No input, but the slight removal, of (210)Pb was observed. Fractionation factors indicate that particulate matter prefers to adsorb (210)Po rather than (210)Pb. In combination with particulate composition, (210)Po diffusion was closely related to organic matter. These results reveal that (210)Po might be a potential tracer for quantifying nutrient recycling in the Coral Reef system.

Electrical transport of bottom-up grown single-crystal Si(1-x)Ge(x) nanowire.

In this work, we fabricated an Si(1-x)Ge(x) nanowire (NW) metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET) by using bottom-up grown single-crystal Si(1-x)Ge(x) NWs integrated with HfO(2) gate dielectric, TaN/Ta gate electrode and Pd Schottky source/drain electrodes, and investigated the electrical transport properties of Si(1-x)Ge(x) NWs. It is found that both undoped and phosphorus-doped Si(1-x)Ge(x) NW MOSFETs exhibit p-MOS operation while enhanced performance of higher I(on)∼100 nA and I(on)/I(off)∼10(5) are achieved from phosphorus-doped Si(1-x)Ge(x) NWs, which can be attributed to the reduction of the effective Schottky barrier height (SBH). Further improvement in gate control with a subthreshold slope of 142 mV dec(-1) was obtained by reducing HfO(2) gate dielectric thickness. A comprehensive study on SBH between the Si(1-x)Ge(x) NW channel and Pd source/drain shows that a doped Si(1-x)Ge(x) NW has a lower effective SBH due to a thinner depletion width at the junction and the gate oxide thickness has negligible effect on effective SBH.

Heavy metal removal from aqueous solution in sequential fluidized-bed reactors.

In this study, the sequential fluidized bed reactors (FBRs), were used to remove heavy metals including, Cu, Pb, and Ni, from synthetic wastewater. Heavy metals were removed through crystallization of metal carbonate and hydroxide precipitates on the surface of sand grains. The results showed that the influent metal concentration limits in the sequential FBRs were higher than those in the vertical FBRs. The removal efficiency for Cu, Pb, and Ni reached 96%, 93%, and 98% when the influent concentrations were 250 mg l(-1), 130 mg l(-1) and 130 mg l(-1), respectively. The pH value in the effluent of the FBR ranged from 8.7 to 9.1. The amount of metal coated onto the sand surface was determined and it was found that most of the metal ions were collected in the first reactor. The mechanism of heavy metal removal in the sequential FBRs concluded crystallization and filtration.

[The mineral content in adult radius and ulna in southwestern area of Guang-xi].

We investigate the BMD of ulna and radius of 2690 persons in southwestern areas of Guang-xi. The results show that the bone mineral content in male is higher than that in female and it is higher in middle-aged person than in the elderly. It is at 32-33 years old that the BMD reaches the peak, then decreases after 35 years old with 5-7 percent and/10 percent loss of the bone mass in male and female per 10 years, respectively. The losing rate of bone mass in female after 50 years old is faster than that in male. In addition, we compared the BMD in workers of different professions at the same age, and found that the heavier the labour intensity, the higher the bone mineral content and the BMD is higher in workers doing outdoor works. The bone mineral content in miners who work in the mine for a long time is lowered. This presentenship that there is a close relationship between the bone mineral content and age, sex, sunshine exposure and intensity of labour.